GCP Cloud Architect

Role: Cloud Data Architect

Location: London, UK

Duration: Contract

Job Description:

Key Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership and strategic direction for enterprise-scale data migration and modernization initiatives.
• Architect end-to-end data platforms using Dataproc, Dataflow, Pub/Sub, BigQuery, Cloud Spanner, and Bigtable.
• Define and implement real-time and batch processing pipelines for complex use cases involving streaming analytics, ML feature engineering, and automation.
• Act as a trusted advisor to senior technical and business stakeholders across industries (e.g., telecom, retail, financial services).
• Drive data quality, governance, lineage, and security standards across enterprise data pipelines.
• Mentor engineering teams and lead best practice adoption across data architecture, orchestration, and DevOps tooling.
• Participate in technical workshops, executive briefings, and architecture reviews to evangelize GCP data capabilities.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Data Engineering, or related technical field.
• 12+ years of experience in data architecture and data engineering with proven skills and leadership in large-scale cloud data programs.
• 5+ years of advanced expertise in Google Cloud data services: Dataproc, Dataflow, Pub/Sub, BigQuery, Cloud Spanner, and Bigtable.
• Hands-on experience with orchestration tools like Apache Airflow or Cloud Composer.
• Hands-on experience with one or more of the following GCP data processing services: Dataflow (Apache Beam), Dataproc (Apache Spark/Hadoop), or Composer (Apache Airflow).
• Proficiency in at least one scripting/programming language (e.g., Python, Java, Scala) for data manipulation and pipeline development. Scala is mandated in some cases.
• Deep understanding of data lakehouse design, event-driven architecture, and hybrid cloud data strategies.
• Strong proficiency in SQL and experience with schema design and query optimization for large datasets.
• Expertise in BigQuery, including advanced SQL, partitioning, clustering, and performance tuning.
• Experience with version control systems (e.g., Git).
• Track record of success advising C-level executives and aligning technical solutions with business goals.
• Google Professional Data Engineer certification.
• Google Professional Cloud Architect certification or equivalent.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with modernization of on-premise and mainframe data environments into cloud-native architectures.
• Knowledge of regulatory data requirements across financial, healthcare, and telecom sectors.
• Familiarity with IaC (Terraform), GitOps, and CI/CD for data pipeline deployment.
• Strong communication, stakeholder management, and mentoring skills